Season
of Lent
Second Sunday: Matthew 7:15-27
THE TRUE DISCIPLE
INTRODUCTION
Jesus promoted transition from the
ritualistic religion to a service oriented one. He wanted that the
Christians transform what they hear from the Bible to the service of
fellow humans as representatives of Jesus. Non-Christians should
recognize his disciples from the fruits of their Christian living. Jesus
will punish those who pretend as Jesus’ disciples and misguide others.
Christians should be cautious of such false religious leaders. We must
build our faith on Christ the rock, so we will stay firm with him during
the temptations or the tribulations that challenge our faithfulness to
God.
BIBLE TEXT
(Matthew 7:15) Beware of false prophets: they
come to you disguised as sheep, but inside they are wild wolves.
(16) You will recognize them by their fruits. Do you ever pick grapes
from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles? (17) A good tree always
produces good fruit; a bad tree produces bad fruit. (18) A good tree
cannot produce bad fruit, nor a bad tree good fruit. (19) Any tree that
does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown in the fire. (20) So you
will know them by their fruit.
(21) Not everyone who says to me: Lord! Lord!
will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my
Father in heaven. (22) Many will say to me on that day, “Lord, Lord, did
we not speak in your name? Did we not cast out devils and perform many
miracles in your name?” (23) Then I will tell them openly: I have never
known you; get away from me, you workers of evil!
(24) So, then, anyone who hears these words
of mine and acts accordingly is like a wise man, who built his house on
rock. (25) The rain poured, the rivers flooded, and the wind blew
against that house, but it did not collapse because it was built on
rock. (26) But anyone who hears these words of mine and does not act
accordingly, is like a fool who built his house on sand. (27) The rain
poured, the rivers flooded, and the wind blew against that house, and
down it went with a mighty crash.
INTERPRETATION
Background
This gospel passage is the concluding part of
the famous “Sermon on the Mount” Matthew gives in chapters five to
seven. Jesus intended this as a discourse on how his disciples should
live until his second coming to judge the world.
(15) Beware of false prophets, who come
to you in sheep’s clothing, but underneath
are ravenous wolves.
False prophets
Jesus warned, “For false Christs and false
prophets will appear and perform signs and wonders so great that they
would deceive even God’s chosen people, if that were possible.” (Matthew
24:24). God warned Israelites through Moses: “If it happens that a
prophet or an interpreter of dreams arises in your midst and promises a
sign or a portent, and if this sign or portent really comes to
fulfillment, and he takes advantage of them to say: ‘Come, let us follow
other gods’ (gods you have not known), ‘and let us serve them,’ you
shall not pay attention to the words of this prophet or interpreter of
dreams; because the LORD, your God, is testing you to find out if you
really love him with all your heart and with all your soul.”
(Deuteronomy 13: 2-4). So, God allows false prophets to test our
fidelity to Him.
Ravenous wolves
Sheep’s clothing
There were people who abused the office of
prophets during the early church. They were doing offensive and
punishable actions in front of God. In the modern times, there are false
prophets within the church and outside who appear as sincere and mislead
the faithful.
(16) By their fruits you will know
them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles?
By their fruits
People will plant the seeds or stems of
vegetations that bear good fruit. So also, God will select to his second
Garden of Eden, people who bear good fruit.
Do people pick grapes from thorn
bushes? …
(17) Just so, every good tree bears
good fruit, and a rotten tree bears bad fruit. (18) A good tree cannot
bear bad fruit, nor can a rotten tree bear good fruit. (19) Every tree
that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.
God allows both good and bad to live together
until harvest (Matthew 13:24-30). Since God allows time for repentance
and conversion of heart, there might not be an immediate punishment for
the evildoers. The higher you are in rank as a Christian, the more your
responsibility to yield good Christian outcome.
(20) So by their fruits you will know
them.
People will distinguish false prophets from
good ones by their interests and intentions. The false teachers seek
personal gain, popularity, and share their personal views. We should not
follow them.
(21) “Not everyone who says to me,
‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who
does the will of my Father in heaven.
Says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’
Who does the will of my Father
(22) Many will say to me on that day,
‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name? Did we not drive out
demons in your name? Did we not do mighty deeds in your name?’
Jesus would surprise even many of those who
served him by his rejection of them at his second coming. Christ
highlights here three of the major services of the early Christianity:
the prophets, the healers, and the miracle workers who did their service
in Jesus’ name. He will measure them based on their intention: whether
they did it for their self-glory or to accomplish the will of the
Father. A Christian shall not take credit for his excellent works
because the credit belongs to God who will reward the disciple who
worked on behalf of Jesus.
(23) Then I will declare to them
solemnly, ‘I never knew you. Depart from me, you evildoers.’
I never knew you.
Depart from me
You evildoers
(24) Everyone who listens to these
words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his
house on rock.
Listening to Jesus’ message is not enough.
The wisdom of a true Christian is that he acts on the words of Jesus. He
will consider those who do only lip-service as foolish persons.
(25) The rain fell, the floods came,
and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it
had been set solidly on rock.
Challenges for a Christian shall come from
all directions: rain coming from above, floods from below, winds
sweeping across, and bang from every direction.
Solidly on rock
(26) And everyone who listens to these
words of mine but does not act on them will be like a fool who built his
house on sand.
Like a fool
(27) The rain fell, the floods came,
and the winds blew and buffeted the house. And it collapsed and was
completely ruined.
Jesus, who had experience as a builder, knew
very well what would happen to a house built without a solid foundation.
Jesus compares this to a disciple who has no strong spiritual
foundation. His faith will collapse when he faces challenges in life.
MESSAGE
1. Christians should be careful of “false”
Christian denominations that misguide them to join their group leaving
Catholic Church founded on St. Peter the apostle.
2. The basis of true Christianity is the Word
of God that leads to charitable actions. Non-Christians should recognize
our Christian identity based on our service from the heart.
3. Whatever good we do as Christians is a
gift of God and we should acknowledge that and give credit to God. Even
the willingness to help others and the joy out of that are gifts of God.
4. During this season of Lent, we have to
readjust our lives, so God accepts our actions and attitude.